ATM transactions on the rise

Banknet survey shows 64% of respondents are comfortable with the machine.

Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) are often thought to be just cash dispensing machines or a point to check balance in bank accounts at one's convenience.

But now, more and more people trust this gizmo to deposit their cash and cheques, according to a recent ATM users' survey by Banknet India.

Out of 300 persons who participated in the survey, 64 per cent said they were comfortable with depositing cash and cheques in an ATM.

This, perhaps, reflects a change in people's mindset towards trusting the safety of these machines and accepting the norms of the bank staff counting the notes in their absence, it said.

However, customers also complained about the non-availability of envelopes to stuff cash at ATMs. While the ATM usage is on the rise, customers have some problems in using these machines. Waiting in long queues at ATMs remains a bugbear. This indicates the need to install additional machines at high-demand areas.

The limit on daily cash withdrawal is another major problem that ATM users often complain about. Perhaps the lack of wide acceptance of debit cards at many shops and outlets makes people to resort to cash withdrawal for their needs, the survey said.

About 95 per cent of the respondents preferred banking through ATMs over conventional branch banking. Over two-thirds of persons used ATMs more than once in fifteen days.

People are now less hesitant towards the use of ATMs for usualservices.

There is an increase in the monthly usage of these machines, as the plethora of services that banks have started offering are now being used by consumers.The bill payment and pre-paid mobile recharges are some of the frequently used value-added services at ATMs.

The services, like mutual fund transactions and booking airline and rail tickets, are not commonly used, as customers are sceptical about charges of using such services, or banks are yet to provide such services, the survey pointed out.

With huge growth in the withdrawal of money, ATMs deplete cash at a faster rate than what banks assumed. This hints at inadequate cash management and the need for better forecasting of daily cash requirements at various locations, it added.